In Their Blood
by NerdofSpades
Summary: Barbara Lake saw an uncomfortably familiar pattern in the behavior of James Lake Junior. She saw it in almost everything he did these days. She had seen it in her friends growing up. She had lived it herself. She just wasn't sure how to help him, so, instead, she calls in a friend.


**Hello all! Once again, this is from an idea from A Singular Jame.**

**I have no plans to continue this work into a full detailed AU (honestly, it's pretty AU for both fandoms...), but I will happily allow someone else the joy of bringing it to life.**

**Hope you guys like it,**

**NoS**

* * *

Barbara wasn't sure how to handle this. She had come to Arcadia to get away from all the villains and heroes that had defined her life until then. Sure, the people here still got drawn into the dramatics of it all, and they still suffered when something big happened, but they were safe over all. They didn't have anyone here to attract unneeded trouble.

Unless you counted Barbara herself, and she didn't.

It had been a not so minor miracle of magic and modern medicine when she had managed to leave it all behind with her spine intact. Not that she wasn't perfectly capable of holding her own and living her life in a wheelchair, but the shit people gave her for it… she didn't think she'd be able to handle that and not wind up doing something stupid that attracted far too much unwanted attention to her and her new little family.

There was the added benefit that her old enemies thought she was still paralyzed from the waist down.

But that was the past. That was why she was here. Building a new, safe life for her, her son, and (back before he had abandoned them) her husband.

She didn't know how Jim wound up in this, or even what exactly _this_ is, but she knew it wasn't safe. She knew what it meant when he was out at odd hours, sleeping in the day, and trying the hid a limp or a bruise.

She knew the lies.

She knew her son.

She can't say she's surprised her little boy took up the banner of justice, she just thought it would never happen in a sleepy little town like this.

For the tenth night in a row, she listened to Jim open the front door as quietly as he could and sneak up the stairs that didn't even squeak under his feet anymore. She'd altered them to make that a difficult feat if you didn't know them.

Barbara bit back the urge to go out and confront her son. It wouldn't help. She knew he didn't want her to worry. That he didn't want to pull her into whatever mess he'd found. To Jim, she was a civilian. Sure, she might know Krav Maga and be a doctor, but he didn't think she had ever seen a fight.

To be honest, she just wanted to know what was going on with their trash. It definitely had something to do with the basement, but she hadn't managed to find any other proof of anyone or anything down there other than a few odd sounds that she _knew_ wasn't the house settling.

A quick glance at the clock was followed by a loud sigh. Jim would probably be asleep by now. The corners of Barbara's mouth twitched at the thought. Her boy always had fallen asleep quickly, even more so once he started his late-night escapades.

More importantly, she wasn't going to be falling asleep anytime soon. She'd started trying to take more day shifts, but her clock had long since been set to keep her running in the night.

One last sigh and Barbara pulled out her phone. There wasn't any point in waiting any longer. Keying in the numbers was second nature. Even if she had lost touch, she would never have forgotten.

The phone rang twice, and the familiar, soothing voice came from the other end. "Hey, Babs," Dick answered. Barbara could hear the smile in his voice. "You caught me just after patrol, what's up?"

Barbara laughed softly, with the sound fading off quickly, worrying her lip when she remembered why she was calling. Did she really want to bring all of that back into her life? Did she want Jim to know about all of this?

"Babs?"

"Dick," she said slowly, "I need a favor." She couldn't put this off. She couldn't let her son think he was alone. Whatever was going on, they'd handle it together. Just as soon as she figured out how bad it was.

* * *

Dick grinned at his old friend when she opened the door. "I brought take out," he said, holding up the bags.

Barbara gave him an unimpressed look. "I could have made something," she said. "Or paid for it myself." She stepped aside to let him in.

Dick rolled his eyes and crossed the threshold. "First of all, I've had your cooking." He glanced around, running a quick visual inspection and cataloguing every possible weapon and hiding place. "Second of all, I'm visiting an old friend, can't I bring you something?" He set the food on the table and began pulling out boxes.

Barbara sighed and dropped the argument. "So," she said, taking a seat and opening the first box, "what did you find?"

"Not much," Dick answered, opening his own box. "I can see why you picked this town to hide in. There's nothing here."

Barbara raised an eyebrow. "Clearly, there is."

Dick nodded. "Yeah, I'm not about to question that. I trust you, Babs. Heck, that one guy you sent me after, Walter Strickler, is honestly the most interesting thing I can find in this town. Why him, again?"

"Ah-ah-ah, you first."

Dick rolled his eyes but complied. "It's well covered, but I can't find any real evidence that he existed more than twenty-five years ago. He's got all his paperwork, but if you look at the places in his background, you can't find a single mention of him. Nothing beyond that though."

"Huh," Barbara looked interested, but let that thread go for now. "Jim's always been close to Walter. He was Jim's favorite teacher, until he started flirting with me."

Dick choked on his take out and burst out laughing.

Barbara kicked him under the table and bit down a smile of her own. "Yeah, yeah, we've got some of the usual kid doesn't like the new boyfriend bit going on, too. But there's more to it than that. Jim wasn't just hostile when we had dinner together, he was nervous. Like he thought someone was going to get hurt. And they didn't do that good of a job hiding their conversation while I was in the kitchen."

Dick coughed a bit and settled back. "Hehehe, ah… Okay. I'm done laughing. What conversation?"

Barbara shrugged. "They weren't exactly being straight about it. A lot of beating around the bush, but they both knew what was going on and it wasn't anything good."

Dick nodded and a soft silence fell as they ate. "You named him Jim," Dick finally said.

Barbara looked up. "Technically, he gets his name from his dad. He's James Lake Junior. But, after James left, he's always been a lot closer to Dad, so he prefers to go by Jim. Insists his grandad is his namesake." Barbara chuckled softly. "Not entirely wrong either. He takes after my dad, too."

Dick smiled. "I know you don't like to talk about it," he said, putting down his food, "but how are you holding up?"

"It's been eleven years, Dick," Barbara scowled. "I've lasted this long without him."

Dick nodded. "What do you plan to do now?"

Barbara shrugged. "Keep doing what I have been, I guess. This isn't really enough to know what's going on, but at least I know keeping an eye on Walter will get me somewhere."

Dick hesitated. "Why not go straight to the source?" he asked. "Why not Jim?"

Barbara stopped, and put down her own food. "I… I don't know. Logically, it would be the best way to get an answer. I just can't help feeling like that's going too far. I want him to come to me, not stalk him."

Dick nodded again. "I know what I brought wasn't much, but there's only so much I can do from out of town…"

The door opened, and they both stopped talking.

"Hey, Mom! I'm home…" Jim trailed off when he saw Dick and the food containers on the table. "Uh…"

Barbara pulled a smile onto her face. "Jim! Sweetie, this is an old friend of mine, Dick. He brought some food, if you want some."

Dick gave a smile and a small wave. Jim watched him carefully. "Sure…" he said as he sat down.

"So, Jim, how's school going?" Dick asked, acting like he didn't already know exactly how Jim was doing in each of his classes. His grades had slipped slightly but had steadied fairly quickly. His grade in gym had actually gone up a little.

"Fine," he answered. He did not look like he trusted Dick at all, which was fair. Dick was a strange man waltzing into his life. And if Barbara was right, Jim had every reason to be watching for enemies.

"Any favorite classes?" Dick pressed. "Or favorite teachers?"

Jim shrugged. "Not really. It's just school, ya know?"

Dick nodded, smiling at him.

"So, are you dating my mom?" he asked.

Dick had to force himself not to laugh. Jim would not appreciate that. "No. We dated once, when we were younger, but that's in the past. You could ask your grandfather about me if you want."

"You know Grandad?" Now that had gotten Jim's attention.

"Yup," Dick answered. "You could probably get a lot of stories out of him. Your mom and I got into some wild adventures growing up." Jim was turning wide eyes to his mom. Dick hid a wince as Barbara kicked him again under the table. "What about you?" Dick asked before Jim could start interrogating his mom. "Surely you and your friends have your own stories to tell if you're anything like Babs."

Jim glanced between them. "Uh, I guess," he said. "Not exactly something you admit to in front of your mom, though."

Barbara snorted. "I'd rather you tell me, so I know if you need help. You're a teenager, you're bound to have a little fun where you're not supposed to. And eat up," she said nudging some of the take out closer to Jim. "You're a growing boy."

Jim seemed to do a do a quick check of the table. Dick wasn't surprised when Jim only reached for the food and began eating quickly after he had noticed Dick had eaten some as well.

Dick kept poking at Jim, using the guise of a curious adult to try and pry information out of him. Barbara sat back and let him. He could get away with these questions, she couldn't. Jim, however, was good at keeping his secrets. Not quite good enough to cover his deflections, but it looked like a normal kid not trusting someone rather than the paranoia of a vigilante. Doesn't mean the kid wasn't paranoid. Eventually, Jim made his excuses and scurried upstairs.

"That went better than expected," Barbara muttered as Jim's door closed upstairs.

Dick hummed in agreement. "I see what you meant about him," he said. "He's cagey."

Barbara snorted. "The last two men in my life both hurt him. Even if he wasn't playing vigilante, he wouldn't trust you."

"Babs…" Barbara turned back towards him. "About what I was saying earlier…"

"You're not following him," Barbara answered sharply. "You can look into anything else, but you won't follow Jim."

Dick nodded. "Alright. I can do that."

They both rose. "Get your bags," Barbara said. "You're staying here. I've got an empty bedroom you can use."

"What? No-" Dick started, putting his hands up.

"You're only staying a few days," Barbara interrupted. "And I want to spend some time with an old friend… and it will get Jim more used to seeing you around."

"Fine," Dick relented. "I'll stay here."

"And Dick?"

"Yeah?"

"Investigate as you, not Nightwing. We don't need any _old friends_ getting bad ideas. Not around Jim."

Dick nodded. That was a given. This little family needed their peace of mind.

* * *

Barbara sat, waiting for her son to come home. For the first time, she wasn't waiting in the darkness of her bedroom, and instead she waited in the living room, with the lights on. She had a book open to help her pass the time and a box settled on the couch across from her.

"Mom?"

She looked up and smiled softly. Jim was nervous. Of course he was nervous. He had been trying to hide his nightlife from her. "Jim," she said standing to greet him, "I'm glad you're home."

"Is everything alright?" he asked shifting on his feet and wincing as he aggravated some injury or another.

Barbara frowned. "Not if you're injured, young man. Sit down and let me treat you."

Jim simultaneously managed to blush and turn pale. "I'm not- It's not that bad!" he stuttered.

Barbara pinned him with a harsh glare, and he gulped before hobbling to a chair and taking a seat. Barbara nodded to herself and retrieved the first aid kit.

"So, uh, why are you still up?" Jim asked as Barbara settled down and started looking over the injury.

"I believe I'm the one that should be asking you that," she said, not looking away from her work. It truly wasn't all that bad, but still enough that she needed to wrap his ankle and put some ice on it. With a small sigh she looked up. "I've known about you sneaking out for a while now."

"Is that why Dick was here?" Jim asked.

Barbara smiled at him. "Yes. Dick's a detective. I had brought up your behavior to him and he decided to visit. We were debating some things."

Jim had gone still and somehow paler. "You… you had someone-"

"No, Jim, I told him very specifically not to follow you," Barbara reassured him. "He looked into some others, though. He didn't find much. Not enough to know any exact details, but enough to confirm our suspicions."

"And… what would that be?"

Barbara stood and retrieved the box. She sat on the arm of the chair Jim had claimed and gave it to him. "You remember how I grew up in Gotham?" she asked.

Jim nodded, glancing between her and the box before slowly opening it. He paused, then slowly pulled out Barbara's old, bright yellow belt. "You…"

"I was Batgirl," Barbara said, nodding and placing a hand across Jim's shoulders.

"But… they said you fell off a building."

"Yeah," Barbara winced. "The League has access to some healing practices they can't give to everyone, simply because the people who can do it are usually hard to find and don't want to make their skills publicly known. That said, I got better, and decided it was time to retire. I wanted a family, and I wanted them to be safe and not have to worry about villains and criminals every day."

Jim glanced up at her. "Yeah, you mentioned that part before."

Barbara nodded. "Gotham isn't exactly the safest place to raise a family. It would have been even worse for you. The grandson of one of the most influential police commissioners the city had ever seen and with the Bats coming and going, you would never have known peace."

Jim nodded slightly, turning his attention back to the box and sorting through it, pulling out pieces of old gear and her costume.

"Jim, sweetie. I told you we don't know the details, and that's true. But I want you to know, whatever's going on, I can help you, and I will do whatever I can to make sure you come home safe. But I can't do that if you don't talk to me."

Jim nodded slowly, still taking in the concept that his mom was a hero. A retired hero, maybe, but still a hero. "Can we… can we talk about this tomorrow? I think I need some time to process this."

Barbara nodded. "Of course. But Jim, you know you can't tell people about this, right? It would put us in danger if it spread."

Jim winced slightly. "Family secret, got it."

Oh, Barbara had no doubt there would be someone he would want to tell. Toby and Claire, easy. They'd cross that bridge when they get there. "Alright, time for bed," she said, standing up and starting to shoo him out. "And try to keep your weight off that foot if you can. If you need a doctor's note, I can do that."

"Goodnight, Mom."

"Goodnight, Jim."


End file.
